This story was updated on Wednesday, May 14, 2025, at 8:12 p.m.
Georgia prosecutors in the sweeping racketeering case against activists opposed to Atlanta’s public safety training center say they have collected an additional 57 gigabytes worth of evidence, nearly two years after the indictment was handed down.
Nearly all 61 defendants facing various charges traveled from out of state to the Fulton County courtroom for Wednesday’s status hearing, but a handful currently outside the country did not make it.
One defendant is believed to be in France, though a bench warrant has been issued against him. Another is in Canada, and a third is in Italy, reportedly unable to re-enter the country due to passport and other issues.
Prosecutors have accused the group of participating in a years-long racketeering conspiracy and a violent movement to stop the construction of the multi-million-dollar, 85-acre facility that critics call “Cop City,” which recently opened.
Judge Kevin Farmer, who is now presiding after the last judge was moved to another court, said that he wants to keep the case from dragging on even longer, but he knows it will take time, especially since several defense attorneys raised new concerns about letting prosecutors file more discovery after the last hearing a year ago. That’s in addition to the 5 terabytes that prosecutors had already given them to sift through.
“We don’t know what’s going to happen next,” said Xavier de Janon, attorney for defendant Jamie Marsicano, at a rally after the hearing. “This is the largest RICO that this county has faced, and we, as defense attorneys, feel that, because every hearing we get more deadlines that aren’t respected, we get more evidence that gets disclosed and we don’t get any motions ruled on.”
Meanwhile, defendant Sonali Gupta maintains the indictment is, as she puts it, “bogus.”
“I’m a scientist,” Gupta said. “I would rather not think about politics. I would rather just be able to live a normal life. I’m a hardworking citizen, and they have turned me into [a] criminal.”
Dozens of supporters of the “Stop Cop City” movement turned out for the hearing, filling a second courtroom and handing out food and drinks outside. A news release stated their goal was to “show the state, the judge, and the ATL61 that there are eyes on this case and we support them.”
A trial date has yet to be set in the case, but the judge said he expects the defendants will be divided into groups of five and that the first of 12 trials will begin either in the summer or fall.
However, at least 33 defendants have signed a letter asking to be heard together, which Georgia Deputy Attorney General John Fowler said “didn’t seem unreasonable.” Georgia law gives the state the right to choose what order to bring people to trial, though, as one defense attorney pointed out, the judge can pick the groups.
Still, de Janon said he thinks the case will face challenges, regardless of how it’s handled.
“Judge Farmer tried and is trying his best to organize this case, move it forward, schedule it, but every time a defendant was called, another problem arose,” De Janon said. “And so moving the case forward for any judge, any court will be very, very difficult.”
The case is set to play out just months after Georgia lawmakers unsuccessfully tried to pass a bill to strip campus protesters of student scholarships, which was seen by opponents as a way to punish those whose speech they disagree with.
It also comes as President Donald Trump’s administration escalates efforts to suppress and retaliate against public dissent. In March, Trump said he would try to stop federal funding for colleges that allowed what he described as “illegal” protests and wielded his power against institutions that have angered him, including law firms, educational institutions, museums and performing arts centers.
